Speaking on the department’s memorial day on Tuesday for firefighters who had sacrificed themselves in rescue missions, Leung said the 153-year-old department has faced unprecedented pressure and challenges from social unrest and the Covid-19 pandemic over the past two years.

“In the future, the department will have to overcome new challenges in response to the rapid change in social environment and the implementation of the National Security Law,” he said.

“We will stick to the idea to ‘stand with the people and root for the nation’ to defend and prevent all sorts of disasters and threats at all costs,” he said. “We shall maintain social stability, safeguard national security and not disappoint citizens and the nation.”